New MacBook Pros now tipped for early November
updated 03:35 pm EDT, Fri October 21, 2011
MacBook Pro refresh possibly moved for iPhone 4S
New leaks have moved back the late 2011 MacBook Pro update to early November. A previously accurate AppleInsider source said that the notebooks had been penned in for late September but were delayed after the iPhone 4S' October 14 release had been solidified. Rather than risk diminishing iPhone efforts and overshadowing the Mac, Apple reportedly left the date in flux and told resellers not to expect more systems until the November schedule.
The delay may have caught vendors off-guard. Amazon, MacMall, and others have already run out. Apple may have stopped producing the 17-inch MacBook Pro in mid-September and quickly dropped the high-end 15-inch systems as well. The decision would leave little choice for Apple but to update the system soon.
Intel has just recently refreshed its mobile Core i7 line with models that are functionally identical but clocked much higher than the existing processors. At 2.4GHz, 2.5GHz, and 2.7GHz, they would make the low-end 15-inch MacBook Pro faster than Apple's current high-end. New 13-inch models wouldn't be as aggressively upgraded but could start with at least a dual-core 2.5GHz Core i5 and climb to 2.8GHz for the upgraded model.
The designs should be cosmetically identical. Apple may use the mid-cycle refresh to upgrade the graphics and storage, although the Intel video and high-end AMD Radeons might not have room for an upgrade. New systems aren't expected to change in price.
